A better understanding of key partners and users – and the type of information they need to prepare for and react to weather events – will increase the likelihood of success of the hydrometeorological enterprise as it works collectively to achieve its mission of saving lives and property.

In 2015, the WMO Regional Meteorological Training Centres (RMTCs) that became the cornerstone of efforts to promote education and training, celebrate 50 years. How did they come to be and how have they evolved over the last decades? Most importantly, in the current environment of privatized meteorological service providers, do they remain pertinent?

Governments, private companies and individuals are demanding ever more sophisticated climate services, as manifested by the Global Framework for Climate Services (GFCS). But parts of the ocean observation network – paramount to the delivery of climate services – are at risk, and the evolution of climate prediction systems is not keeping pace in terms of accuracy and reliability. We are at a critical stage in observing and predicting the El Niño-Southern Oscillation (ENSO).